On Thursday evening, January 19th, the Orange County Bar Association (OCBA) held its annual Judges’ Night. The Honorable Martin J. Jenkins, Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court, installed Michael A. Gregg, as 2023 OCBA President, along with the other new officers and directors. Umberg/Zipser’s own Mei Tsang was installed as OCBA Treasurer and as a Board Member for the OCBA Charitable Fund Board. U/Z’s Scott Garner, OCBA’s 2020 President, served as the Awards Chair. Mei is in line to become OCBA President in 2025, following the path of both Scott Garner and Dean Zipser (2005 President). Scott and Dean, a prior recipient of the prestigious Franklin G. West Award, presented this year’s award to Mark E. Minyard, Esq. Umberg/Zipser is proud of our long and continuing service to the OCBA and other professional organizations.
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Umberg/Zipser Proud to Sponsor Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children (CASA) Celebration
Umberg/Zipser LLP (U/Z) is proud to be a sponsor for the Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children (CASA) Celebration which was held on Saturday, August 27th. U/Z partner, Todd Smith, has been a member of the CASA Board of Directors for several years and currently serves as its Secretary. Prior to his Board service, Todd was a CASA mentor/advocate for two years. Since 1985, CASA has trained more than 4,000 volunteers who have given over 1,800,000 hours to helping over 9,000 youth in the Orange County foster care system. For more information on CASA, please visit https://www.casaoc.org/.
Raise Your Glass 50th Anniversary Celebration
The Orange County Bar Association’s (OCBA) Charitable Fund’s Annual “Raise Your Glass” event last evening was once again a special experience! Umberg Zipser (U/Z) is humbled to be named Law Firm of the Year, as U/Z attorneys have played prominent roles in the organization over the years. Scott Garner served as the Charitable Fund president for 2021. Dean Zipser is a past president, and Mei Tsang has been a long-time board member. The OCBA’s mission is “To enhance the system of justice, to support the lawyers who serve it and to assist the community served by it.” The Charitable Fund supports programs and organizations who “assist the community served by it” through its grants. To learn more about the scope of the organization’s work, visit http://www.ocbacf.org/ryg/.
Scott Garner Leads OCBA Charitable Fund Grant Reception
The Orange County Bar Association Charitable Fund annual reception held last Wednesday honored a number of nonprofit organizations making a positive impact in OC communities. Scott Garner, Umberg/Zipser Partner, and Past President of the OCBA Charitable Fund, had the privilege of presenting grants to the various local non-profits. The Charitable Fund’s mission is to provide resources to organizations and programs to enhance the system of justice and promote equal justice for all.
Umberg/Zipser Again Sponsors CRF-OC Annual Benefit
Umberg/Zipser (U/Z) was proud to again support the Constitutional Rights Foundation, Orange County’s (CRF-OC) Annual Benefit event on October 25, 2018.
Adina Stowell served as CRF-OC’s 2014/2015 President and has been a Board Member since 2006 and Dean Zipser is CRF-OC’s Immediate Past President, and has been a Board Member since 2007.
The Annual Benefit is CRF-OC’s marquee fundraiser and all proceeds support the organization’s unique and highly-regarded civic education programs – Mock Trial, Peer Court, Constitution Day, Law Day and the Orange County Career Forum. Learn more here: https://www.crfoc.org
Umberg/Zipser Again Included in the Civic 50 Orange County List for 2018
Umberg/Zipser (U/Z) is honored to be named again one of Orange County’s 50 most community minded companies at the 2018 Civic 50 OC Awards, presented by the Orange County Business Journal in partnership with OneOC, Points of Light and True Impact. This is the second year that Umberg/Zipser has been honored with the award.
The Civic 50 OC Awards recognize the 50 most community-minded small, mid-size, and large Orange County companies as determined by a national survey. By benchmarking and celebrating best practices, the recognition provides visibility and a framework for how local companies can use their employees’ time, skills and other resources to improve the quality of life in our community.
“We are pleased to be recognized again in the Civic 50 for its second year. One our our firm’s core values is commitment to give back meaningfully to the community. We are proud of the contributions of our attorneys to the legal profession and the community we serve,” said Dean Zipser, co-founding partner.
In addition to the Civic 50 Orange County List, special category awards will be announced at the Civic 50 Orange County Awards Luncheon on October 11, 2018 at the Hotel Irvine. For more information go to www.ocbj.com/bizevents.
The Civic 50 Special Report and List will publish on October 15, 2018 in the Orange County Business Journal.
Mei Tsang Serves as Co-Chair and Umberg/Zipser Sponsors OCBA Charitable Fund’s 2018 Raise Your Glass Fundraiser
Umberg/Zipser (U/Z) partner Mei Tsang served as co-chair for the Orange County Bar Association Charitable Fund’s (OCBACF) annual Raise Your Glass event on Thursday, August 23 at the Newport Beach Country Club. Mei currently serves on the Board of Directors for both the Orange County Bar Association and its Charitable Fund. In addition to Mei’s service, Umberg/Zipser is proud to be a long-time supporter of the OCBACF, and is an Underwriter Sponsor for the event.
Raise Your Glass is the marquee wine tasting and charity awards benefit that is organized by the OCBACF, a nonprofit foundation raising money for law-related charities in Orange County. The event is held to help raise much-needed funds to support law-related organizations and programs in Orange County, including Constitutional Rights Foundation of Orange County, Legal Aid Society of Orange County and Southeast Los Angeles, Public Law Center, and law school and domestic violence clinics and programs. Read more about the event here: http://www.ocbar.org/cf/ryg/.
Mei has an international intellectual property practice focused on helping clients formulate their IP strategy, and shepherding their IP through various business cycles to achieve their business goals worldwide. Mei has substantial experience in patent and trademark portfolio development, and in all aspects of IP enforcement, including negotiation, licensing, and litigation at various courts at the federal, state, and administrative levels. Her clients also depend on her multicultural background and language abilities to help them expand and navigate their IP strategy worldwide.
Umberg/Zipser Sponsors Liberty in North Korea’s Annual Gala
Umberg/Zipser (U/Z) was proud to sponsor the 2018 Liberty in North Korea (LiNK) Gala on September 8 in Beverly Hills. The gala raised over $900,000, which is enough to help rescue 300 North Korean refugees.
LiNK is a nonprofit organization dedicated to rescuing North Korean refugees hiding in China and resettling them in South Korea or the United States. The organization seeks to raise awareness of human rights issues in North Korea through media production, conducting research, and through semiannual tours and events. Learn more here: https://www.libertyinnorthkorea.org
Umberg/Zipser Lawyers Front and Center at Annual ABTL Meeting
Umberg/Zipser attorneys were prominent at the recently concluded 41st Annual Seminar of the Association of Business Trial Lawyers (“ABTL”). The program’s theme was “The Science of Decision Making,” and hundreds of attorneys and judges from the five ABTL chapters across the state attended.
Tom Umberg spoke on a panel discussing “How Juries Decide and How We Help Them Decide,” offering insights gleaned from his 100+ trials. Adina Stowell, who serves on the Board of the Orange County ABTL Chapter, was on the planning committee for the seminar. During the seminar, she worked with the mock jury for the opening and closing argument panels and helped coordinate the final seminar panel, “How Do They Really Make Decisions.”
Umberg/Zipser attorneys are long-time supporters of ABTL. All of the firm’s lawyers are members, Dean Zipser is a past President of the Orange Chapter who remains very active in the organization, Adina Stowell, in addition to serving on the Board, is a former editor of the Chapter’s newsletter, and Carole Reagan is a former member of the newsletter’s editorial board.